Coiling device



` Dec, l, 193()u G. a. HIGGINS 1,785,518

COILING DEVI CE Filed Feb. 5, 195o 2 sheets-sheet 1 Dec. 16,- 1930. G. B. HIGGINS 1,785,518

COILING DEVICE Filed Feb. 5, 1950 ZShBBS-Sheet 2 .z/

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Patentes Dec. 1e, 193e UETED STATES L @ROVER B. HGGINS, F CHECAGQ, ILLINOS CGILING DEVCE Application led February E, 1930. Serial No. 426,180.

The present invention relates to coiling devices, and is particularly concerned with coiling devices adapted to be used with electric extension cords 'for electric appliances or a telephones, or connecting any electric device to a source of supply. v i

rEhe invention is of particular importance when used in connection with movable electric devices which require an extension cord for the supply of electric current, or for the connection with other apparatus, but some of the features of the invention are of general application and maybe used wherever itis desired to take up the slack and t-wist in m a cord, automatically.

The cord coiling devices of the prior art are best adapted to be used with an overhead supply socket or an elevated socket so that the coiling device is located in position to pay out the cord to an electric appliance which is located below the point of attachment of the cord. y I

Where such a coiling device is used on a cord that is connected to a low socket, the o wire of thecoiling device is apt to be pulled across the edge of the table, desk or other work supportfcatching on the corners in such manner as to constitute an annoyance and also marring the furniture through the scratching of the coils of wire on the table,

etc.

One of the objects of the invention is ,the provision of an improved arrangementfor a coiling device adapted to be used with sockets in any location, and adapted to maintain thecoiling device and extension cord in the position which has the best operating characteristics. p

, Another object is the provision of an im# 4 0 provedcoiling device which eliminates entirely any twisting of the extension cord in any position ofthe coiling device. Another object is the provision of an improved coiling device of simple and effective design, having improved operating characteristics with respect to the maintenance of the cord in the coiling device.

Another lobject is the provision o-an improved bracket for coiling devices of the class described, which is adapted to be conare two sheets;

veniently yclamped upon a work support to hold the coiling device in the most desirable position without further adjustment than the actual placing of the bracket in the clamped position.

lAnother object is the provision of improved devices of the class described, which are capable of long and efficient service, and which may be economically manufactured and assembled at a cost which is withinmthe means of a vast number of purchasers.

Another object is the provision of devices of the class described, which may be installed upon existing extension cords, Vtelephone Y leads, etc. without detaching the electric e5 plugs, appliances or other devices-at either endof the cord or lead. l

@ther objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description and from the accompanying draw- 7o ings,.in which similar charactersy of reference indicate similar parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, of which there Fig. l is a view in perspective of one embodiment of the present coiling device, showing its use in connection with an electric iron vand ironing board;

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view taken 80 on the plane of theline 2 2 of F ig, showing the details of construction of the preferred form of bracket which may be used' in the combination of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the of lthe line 3 3 oi Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an elevational view of thebracket in Fig. 2, taken from' the right;

Fig. 5 is an endview of one of the convoluplane sa dtions-of the improved form of coiling de '90 Fig. 6 is a view in perspective of .a part jl an improved coiling device which eliminates entirely twisting of the wire at eithery end of the ceiling device; f

Fig. 7 is a detail view showing the connection between the coiling device and its supporting bracket. f

` Referring to Fig. 1, this is an installation which is exemplary of one of the preferred 100 forms of the invention, and while the present installation shows the use of an electric iron on an ironing board, it should be understood that the same arrangement is applicable to numerous other electrical devices and other types of work supports, such as tables, desks, shelves, etc.

In this arrangement, the ironing board or work support 10 is to be used in connection with the electric iron 11 which is supplied with current from a wall socket 12 located below the plane of the ironing board, and 1f the ordinary coiling device arrangement were used upon the extension cord 13, it will be evident that the respective coils of the coiling device 14 would have to slide over the edge of the ironing board as the coils are extended. l

In order to eliminate the objectionable catching of the coils on the edge of the ironing board and to support the coil1ng dev1ce 14 in the most desirable operative positlon, 1 prefer to provide the coiling device 14 with a supporting bracket indicated in its entirety at 15, the bracket being preferably connected to the coiling device by means of a link 16. The bracket illustrated in Fig. 1 is one of the most simple types which may be most economically manufactured, and this bracket may consist of an upwardly extending arm 17 which is provided with an aperture18 at its upper end for receiving the link 16.

The upper end of the bracket 17 is preferably provided with a curved surface 19 for slidably engaging the inside of the link 16 and permitting the. link 16 to shift from one side to the other of the bracket, thereby giving the link 16 a limited universal movement.

This movement is desirable for the reason that many of the coiling devices are so constructed that they must twist or uncoil slightly when the coils are extended, andthe specific arrangement of the link 16 is capable of permitting movement of the coiling device and extension of the coils without we ar upon the cord or the wires of the. coiling device. The link 16 may be hooked underneath one of the wires of the coiling device 14 before the wire is applied to the cord 13.

The lower end of the bracket 15 is provided with a U-shaped formation 20, the upper leg of which is adapted to engage the top of the table or other part to which it is clamped, and the lower side of which is provided with a clamping screw 21, so that the coiling device 14 may be quickly clamped tothe ironing board 10 to hold the coils free from engagement with the board. The coiling device 14 is thus supported in the position which gives it the best operating characteristics, and as the iron 11 is moved back and forth, the coiling device 14 takes up the slack in the extension cord 13l and prevents interference of the extension cord with the work.

Referring to Figs. 3 and 4, these are detailed views of a preferred form of the coiling device bracket which may be substituted for the bracket 15 in Fig. 1, and the bracket of Fig. 2 is peculiarly adapted to hold thc coiling device in a number of different adjusted positions to suit the convenience of the operator.

The coil supporting arm 22 of this bracket p'e'ferably comprises a tubular metal memr having an openslot 23 extending down its rear side in order to facilitate the insertion of the extension cord 13. If desired, the coiling device 14 may be secured to this arm in a manner similar to thatpreviously described, but a peculiarly simple and effective form of connection between the tube 22 and the coiling device 14 may be provided by forming a narrow slot 24 in the top of thetube 22, the slot 24 being of sullicient width to receive the wire 14, but too narrow to pass a small knob 25 which is customarily formed on the end of the coiling device 14. If desired, a larger hook may be formed on the coiling device to perform the function of knob 25.

The extension cord 13 may also hang down outside of the tube 22 if desired, but/in the preferred form of installation, this extension cord preferably enters the tube 22 adjacent its lower end through a rubber bushing 26, and the cord 13 extends upward through the tube 22 and out of a. rubber bushing 27. Both of the bushings 26 and 27 may be split longitudinally so that the rubber may be spread apart to permit the extension cord 13 to be located in the bores 28, 29 of the bushings. When the bushings are located in assembled relation with the tube 22, they grip the exten sion cord and hold it in the tube 22 so that the cord is protected against any injury and the coil supporting arm 22 of the bracket provides a support for the coiling device as well as a conduit for enclosing and concealing a part of the extension cord.

The lower end of tube 22 is preferably secured to a ball 30 having a shank 31 which is fastened in the tube 22 by a pin 32 or by threading the shank 31 into the tube. vThe ball 30 is preferably supported for a limited universal movement by a sheet metal bracket 33 having a socket 34 stamped therein and provided with an enlarged aperture 35 giving considerable clearance about the shank 3l. The socket 34 is shallower than the diameter of the ball 30, so that when the ball 30 is located in socket 34, the ball projects slightly fro-m the socket and is adapted to engage the ironing board 10 or other work support to which the bracket 33 is clamped.

It will thus be observed that when the bracket 33 is clamped on ironing board 10, the ball 30 will be clamped win a certain adjusted position which may be readily de termined by the operator when the bracket 33 is located on the ironing board.

rlhe bracket 33 is also preferably provided with a clamping member 36 which may consist of a sheet metal member having a downwardly turned tonguel 37 which is adapted to be engaged by the coils of one end oi a spring 38. The clamping member 36 also has a downwardly projecting .flange 39 having a threaded bore 40for receiving a thumb screw 41.

The bracket 33 is also provided with a slot 42 for receiving the body of the thumb screw 41 and the slot 42 may be formed by cutting out a portion 43 from the body of the bracket 33, the portion 43 being bent at right angles to the body 44 of the bracket to Jform a handle. rlhe lower end 45 of the bracket 33 may also extend horizontally and may be provided with an upwardly projecting tongue 46 adapted to be engaged by the coils at the lower end or the spring 38, and

the spring 38 is thus confined between the end of the bracket and the clamping member 36. The spring 38 thus urges the clamping member 36 into clamping position, but' the clamping member 36 may be moved downward away from the ball 3l) by pressing the thumb screw 41 and the handle 43 be-` tween the thumb and fingers of one hand, and the clamping member 36 is slidably supported on the bracket 13 in such manner' that the bracket may be secured in clamping position by merely pressing upon lthe thumb screw 41 and the handle 43 while the bracket is located on the ironing board.

When -the bracket is clamped in the posi-v tion shown in Fig 2, the ball 30 engages the top of the ironing board and the coil supporting arm 22 is automatically secured in any one of a'plurality of different adjustable positions.

Under some conditions, it may be more desirable to have the coil supporting arm 22 lean over towards the side of the ironing board so that the coiling device 14 is entirely out of the way. Under other conditions, it may be desirable to give the coiling device more slack by inclining the arm 22 towards the electric appliance or iron 11, but in any event, the arm may be very quickly secured f in the desired position by merely clamping the bracket on. the table or board.

- Since considerable pull-might be exerted upon the coil supporting bracket under some conditions, it may be desirable to give the on the ironing board 10 by the use of another passing through the clampas shown in Fig. 1 or with the improved bracket' of Fig. 2, but the coiling device illustrated in Fig. 5 is an improved form which has more desirable operating characteristics with respect to the ,maintenance of the extension cord 13 in the coiling device.

rlhe coiling device 14 is preferably provided with a plurality of oppositely disposed or oppositely extending clamping formations 48, 49, and these formations may consist of a. plurality of substantially lat-shaped loops formed in the wire 14 o1'E the coiling device.

Since the clamping formations 48, 49 are opjositely disposed, the wire portions 50 between the loops 48, 49 extend substantially in a diagonal directionacross the extension cord l13, and the complete coiling device 14 conit is immaterial which direction these loops extend, so long as they are oppositely disposed to each other. rlhus, in Fig. 5, theloop 48 contines the extension cord on one side of the adjacent loops 49, confining the extension cord on the otherside. Any force which would tend to pull the extension cord out of one loop would at the same time tend to pull the cord into the adjacent o positely disposed loops, and on account o this particular arrangement, the present coiling device is peculiarly adapted to keep the extension cord in proper position within the loops 48, 49.

The Wire 14 of the coiling device also extends in the general direction ofa helix so as to hold the extension cord 13 in coils as shown in Fig. 1 or Fig. 6.. It should also be ,L

understood that the same arrangement'may be utilized with other forms of devices for For this purpose, the coiling device 14 consists of a wire having the clamping formations 48 or 49 and extending in the general direction of a left hand helix over a certain portion of the coils as at 51. At the point 52 the. direction of the coils of the helix is reversed, and for the remainder of the ceiling device the Wire 14 extends in the general direction of a right hand helix from the point 52 onward as at 53.

When an ordinary helical ceiling device is subjected to a pull on the extension cord 13, the respective coils separate and pay out slack, but at the same time a certain amount of uncoiling inevitably takes place, and this produces some twisting of the extension cord at the ends of the ceiling device. However, in the device of Fig. 6, any twisting of the respective right hand and left hand helices 51, 53, is taken up by rotation of the juncture 52 between the helices, and there is no twisting at the ends of the ceiling devices.

It will thus be observed that I have invented an improved arrangement for ceiling devices, by means of which the ceiling device may be located in the most desirable operating position, including an improved form of wire for the ceiling device which is peculiarly adapted to maintain the cord in firm engagement with the wire, and a particular form of convolution for the ceiling device which eliminates twisting of the extension cord at beth ends .of the device.

Since all of the convolutions of the coiling device in Fig. 6 will be substantially identical, only one turn each of the right hand and left hand helices have been shown in full, and it will be understood that as many convolutions may be utilized as may seem desirable in any particular situation. The convolutions are illustrated in extended position.

The improved form of coil supporting bracket also is peculiarly adapted to support the ceiling device in the most convenient positions, and the bracket may be secured in any of a plurality of adjustable positions by merely placing the bracket upon the edge of.

a table or other werk support.

When the present arrangement is used with a ceiling device, there is no possibility of the coils catching on the edge of atable or other work support, and the ceiling devices may be utilized with low sockets which would otherwise render the use of a ceiling device practically impossible. When the ceiling devices of the prior art are improperly installed in such manner as to interfere with the table, desk or other furniture, they may ;nsane struction set forth, but desire to avail myself i of all changes within 'the scopeof the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is new and desire to secure by` Letters Patent 'of the United States, is:

l. A ceiling device for electric extension cords, comprising a resilient metal wire memsaid cord in said loops and confine said cord atk opposite sides ofsaid cord.

2. A ceiling device for electric extension cords, comprising a resilient metal wire mem- Vber, having the general shape of a helix and adapted to support the extension cord in helical form,- said wire member being formed with a plurality of open-sidedloops to facilitate insertion of said cord in said loops, said loops having their open sides. oppositely disposed with respect to adjacent loops, and diagonally extending, substantially straight port-ions of wireA joining said loops and ex'- tending longitudinally of said extension cord. In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 31st day of January. 1930.

.GROVER B. HIGGINS.

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